More power and music to the people

BY JULIA WADE

Thanks to a recent boost in power, local radio waves can now stretch further afield, carrying a unique style of music and commentary into homes which lay on the frequency limits.

Local radio station, Heads 106.4FM, was recently given government approval to increase outage by a massive 400 per cent, from 25 to 100 watts, enabling more listeners to tune in to the eclectic mix of music and comical soundbites – such as commentary by The Muppets – the station has been providing for over 14 years.

The official 100 watt ‘big flick’ happened on January 3 after a new more powerful transmitter was installed.

HeadsFM owner, manager and operator Mark Perry, who also runs sister station The Wireless, says the application for more power was subject to Radio Spectrum Management approval, on the grounds of Mangawhai’s increased population which has grown dramatically since the station first started.

“I’m very excited,” he says. “The extra cost is worth it as the increase in power will mean better coverage for listeners in certain dead spots and on the fringes of the broadcast footprint area.”

First taking to the air in 2004 as a ‘low power hobby station’, Perry ran HeadsFM on weekends after finishing his regular Friday morning on-air shift at Radio Hauraki. A purchase of a 25 watt frequency on 106.4FM in 2008 gave the station more stretch to reach out to the Bream Bay region, and transmitters located high on the foothills of the Brynderwyn range allow Perry’s original style of ‘self-deprecation and not taking ourselves too seriously’ a wide coverage all the way from Marsden Cove down to Pakiri.

Although the many listeners nationwide and around the world who stream HeadsFM online will remain unaffected by the FM power increase, for tuned-in locals and visitors the boost in signal strength will be welcomed Perry says.

“I’m ever-grateful for the support and endorsement from both listeners and all advertisers,” he says. “We’re one of the last few stations locally owned and operated in New Zealand and we’re proud of our place in the community.”

Southern Broadcast technician Marcus Bekker installing HeadsFM new transmitter, with a bit of help from station owner Mark Perry ‘handing over the occasional screwdriver’. PHOTO/SUPPLIED